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West Bengal is conducting a massive, potentially historic eight-phase state legislative assembly election between March and April 2021. This paper gives a historical account of the different factors that are influencing the conduct of the elections, including the economic challenges facing the state, unabated political violence, and the plight of religious minorities. It also examines so-called ‘Hindu nationalist’ and ‘Bengali sub-n

As Germany makes an important outreach to India, New Delhi will carefully watch how Berlin deals with its economic entanglement with China.

Pakistan is today dangling between hope and despair, propelled largely by President Pervez Musharraf's inability, and refusal, to gauge public sentiments for free and fair elections in the coming months. Discontentment, once confined to media and courtrooms, has spilled out into the streets, creating a stifling atmosphere of anxiety and doubt across the country. Political, economic and social differences have sharpened in the past eight years. Re

At a time when international norms are being reshaped, Iran developing nuclear weapons could increase volatility in West Asia and beyond

Informed and aware passengers and staff members remain two of the most effective counter-terrorism measures to safeguard vulnerable mass transit systems like Delhi Metro.

Experience would suggest the best time for Modi to take tough decisions is now when his popularity is at an all time high and his adversaries, both within his party and without, are still shell-shocked. If he can stake out the key elements of the long-awaited second generation reforms, he can spend the balance of his tenure working to implement them.

Many reform movements are active in India and have the patronage of politicians bereft of any aesthetics. But in Pakistan, the movements have declared Jehad on the soft Islam, soaked in sub continental Sufism. That is why Mr. Asif Zaradari deserves every one's best wishes for his journey to Ajmer.

This special report was written before the 2020 United States presidential elections. Under the incoming Biden administration, the US military withdrawal from Afghanistan is likely to be more gradual and “responsible”, despite the President-elect being in favour of American troops exiting the war-weary country soon. In retrospect, Donald Trump’s insistence on pulling out all US troops from Afghanistan by Christmas 2020 was not misguided, si

Financial health of Indian banks deserves scrutiny. The RBI should strike a careful balance in its policy objectives. Tighter lending norms are unlikely to be a panacea. It must resist the temptation to resort to such short-term fixes.

Elected to the UNSC, Bahrain must reconcile Arab solidarity with its partnership with Israel under the Abraham Accords.

Premature punditry on the Ayodhya verdict is a little bit like writing commentaries on Shakespeare after only reading Lamb's Tales.

By writing to Chief Ministers on administrative systems, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has revived a process that probably died with Jawaharlal Nehru. As Prime Minister, Vajpayee had his year-end Musings, which like Nehru¿s letters covered a wide range of subjects, including foreign policy and security issues.

The Bangladesh interim administration’s announcement in April this year—that it would soon repatriate 180,000 of its 700,000-odd Rohingya refugees back to Myanmar—was quickly hailed as a diplomatic victory. This paper analyses the claim, using semi-structured interviews and thematic analyses of refugee narratives, to highlight its implausibility. It argues that Rakhine State in Myanmar, from which the Rohingyas hail and to which they are ex

Japan’s foreign aid policy towards Myanmar has been an important component of both, its broader approach to Southeast Asia and its Indo-Pacific vision. As one of Myanmar's largest development partners, Japan has consistently supported the country’s infrastructure development and democratic transition efforts, while also providing humanitarian aid. However, Myanmar's protracted political instability, particularly following the 2021 military co

This brief employs text analytics to assess the extent to which speeches at the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) on matters of peace and security find resonance in resolutions passed by the UN Security Council (UNSC). These two are among the six main organs of the UN system: the UNGA is the main deliberative and representative body; and the UNSC is tasked with maintaining global peace and security. This brief studies four contemporary issue

Pragmatism and convergence on Pakistan have replaced ideology and legacy concerns as the main drivers of India-Afghanistan relations

Europe’s relationship with China has transformed in recent years, with Chinese behaviour and actions now increasingly at odds with European values and interests. As Europe adjusts to new global realities amid a full-fledged war, the European Union (EU) and its member states are recalibrating their strategies and relationships with China. This paper aims to decipher these evolutions by assessing the EU approach and those of certain key European

Sundarbans is facing twin challenges of increased population pressure in the north and rising sea levels in the south, occasionally teamed with cyclones from the Bay of Bengal.

Against the backdrop of the Pulwama suicide bombing and the Balakot air-strikes, national security has acquired a political salience that it might not have otherwise. This is reflected in the manifestos of both the main national parties, the BJP and the Congress.

While there is no doubt that Modi’s outreach has paid us rich dividends, it takes two to tango. The UAE leadership has taken a pragmatic and forward-looking view of the rise of India. It also sees a convergence of interests in standing against religious extremism. As the IPL kicks off, it is important to shed our own stereotypes, to update perspectives and take a fresh look at a country that has emerged as such a vital partner in such a short s

The European Union (EU) had been lurching from one crisis to the next even before a majority of British voters expressed their desire to leave it. While staying away from the Brexit debate itself, its implications for UK and EU, and the politics and motivations in the run-up to the vote, this paper argues that at the very least the referendum is a wake-up call for Europe to begin to address some of its structural and operational shortcomings in a

Both India and China have already entered an age of pragmatism. But they must soon transform it in an age of competitive realism if they are to jointly architect and mould the Asian century.

This paper is an outline of existing energy systems - the demand and supply factors and trends seen within the framework of demographic pressures, environmental concerns and eventual possibility of fossil fuels running out.

China aims at a world order in which India is firmly established as a subordinate power.

Little attention is paid to the dynamics of politico-military strategies and civil military discourse on military capabilities and doctrines for any future conflicts

Internet of Things ensures that all data cannot be treated as equal. The principle of net neutrality needs an overhaul to reflect the complicated future of the cyberworld

Oil and conflict dominate headlines, but MENA’s real story lies in the contrasting economic paths of its high-income, middle-income, and fragile states.

Saudi Arabia is seeking to anchor its economic diversification strategy in critical minerals, leveraging its vast reserves, foreign partnerships, and regional positioning to gain industrial clout and geopolitical leverage in the global energy transition.

This paper presents a status report of the BRICS nations (Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa) on two crucial development parameters—inequality and poverty—that have a significant bearing on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs; especially SDG-1 and SDG-10). The paper tracks the origins and movements of absolute and relative poverty, and income and wealth inequality in the BRICS economies over time, highlights the associated cha

While the trip offered a chance to build on cooperation, it also reinforced existing differences between the two countries.

It seized the moment to create a front against China. But long-term sustenance will depend on timeliness of delivery

Chinese leaders, ever so adept at power politics, do not find it difficult to understand where Modi is coming from. If Modi has surprised the world with his enthusiasm for China, Beijing is also pulling out all the stops to woo the Indian PM.

The legacy cross-border payment infrastructure is replete with issues of high costs, limited access, low speed, and opaque structures, which have limited the potential of cross-border payments to enhance international trade and foster economic growth in emerging economies. The increased demand for transparent, accessible, faster and cheaper solutions in the financial sector has pushed the private and public sectors to accelerate investments in in

It has been a few weeks since the ¿momentous¿ Islamabad declaration by Indian PM Vajpayee and Pakistani leader Gen.Musharraf. The full effects of the declaration may not be known for a few months at least, but there have been enough clues coming out of South Asia for prognosticators to decipher. But first one must look at the declaration itself.

Chinese observers say that the event is meant to be an ultimatum to the Japanese side to retreat, particularly on the Taiwan issue. China hopes that the exhibition of strength will make Japan more restrained and prevent it from taking the "Taiwan's problems are Japan's problems" stance.

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has been raising the issue of illegal immigration from Bangladesh for a long time now, identifying itself with the “anti-foreigners agitation” in Assam in the 1980s. The party has recently amplified its position, twin-tagging the issue of illegal immigration from Bangladesh with a promise to update the National Register of Citizens, and amend the Citizenship Act to grant citizenship to Hindus, Buddhists, Sikhs

Even as Lethal Autonomous Weapons Systems (LAWS) promise to revolutionise the battlefield, very little analysis moves beyond the great powers to examine the interests that middle powers may have in these systems. Shaped by their own geostrategic contexts, demographic issues and geography challenges, countries like India, South Korea, Indonesia or the Philippines may find utility in LAWS for improving the efficiency of their forces, reducing both